What greater thing is there for two human soulsthan to feel that they are joined together to strengtheneach other in all labor, to minister to each other in all sorrow,to share with each other in all gladness,to be one with each other in thesilent unspoken memories?

I LOVE YOU

I love you Not only for who you are But for what I am when I am with you. I love you Not only for what you have made of yourself But for what you are making of me. I love you for the part of me that you bring out. I love you for putting your hand into my heart And passing over all the foolish, weak things that you can’t help. Dimly seeing there and drawing out, into the light all the beautiful belongings That no one else had looked quite far enough to find. You have done it without a touch, without a word,

“To Love is Not to Possess

To love is not to possess, To own or imprison, Nor to lose one’s self in another. Love is to join and separate, To walk alone and together, To find a laughing freedom That lonely isolation does not permit. It is finally to be able To be who we really are No longer clinging in childish dependency Nor docilely living separate lives in silence, It is to be perfectly one’s self And perfectly joined in permanent commitment To another–and to one’s inner self. Love only endures when it moves like waves, Receding and returning gently or passionately, Or moving lovingly like the tide In the moon’s own predictable harmony, Because finally, despite a child’s scars Or an adult’s deepest wounds, They are openly free to be Who they really are–and always secretly were, In the very core of their being Where true and lasting love can alone abide.

Some say I can fly on the wind, yet I haven’t any wings. Some have found me floating on the open sea, yet I cannot swim. Some have felt my warmth on cold nights, yet I have no flame. And though you cannot see me, I lay between two lovers at the hearth of fireplaces. I am the twinkle in your child’s eyes. I am hidden in the lines of your mother’s face. I am your father’s shield as he guards your home. And yet… Some say I am stronger than steel, yet I am as fragile as a tear. Some have never searched for me, yet I am around them always. Some say I die with loss, yet I am endless. And though you cannot hear me, I dance on the laughter of children. I am woven into the whispers of passion. I am in the blessings of Grandmothers. I embrace the cries of newborn babies. And yet… Some say I am a flower, yet I am also the seed. Some have little faith in me, yet I will always believe in them. Some say I cannot cure the ill, yet I nourish the soul. And though you cannot touch me, I am the gentle hand of the kind. I am the fingertips that caress your cheek at night. I am the hug of a child. I am love.

I plan on using the Apache Blessing, probably just the first half though:

Now you will feel no rain,for each of you will be shelter for the other.Now you will feel no cold,for each of you will be warmth to the other.Now there will be no loneliness,for each of you will be companion to the other.Now you are two persons,but there is only one life before you.May beauty surround you both in thejourney ahead and through all the years,May happiness be your companion andyour days together be good and long upon the earth.

Treat yourselves and each other with respect, andremind yourselves often of what brought you together.Give the highest priority to the tenderness,gentleness and kindness that your connection deserves.When frustration, difficulties and fear assail your relationship,as they threaten all relationships at one time or another,remember to focus on what is right between you,not only the part which seems wrong.In this way, you can ride out the storms whenclouds hide the face of the sun in your lives – remembering thateven if you lose sight of it for a moment, the sun is still there.And if each of you takes responsibility for the quality of yourlife together, it will be marked by abundance and delight.